Words to Numbers

Writing numbers out in words can be a nightmare

Writing a number in full is something we still do surprisingly often — on cheques, in legal contracts, on invoices, and whenever a figure has to be unambiguous. The written form is harder to alter and harder to misread: a stray digit can turn 100 into 1,000, but "one hundred" leaves no room for doubt. That's exactly why banks and lawyers ask for both the figure and the words.

English groups large numbers in threes: thousands, millions, billions, trillions. You read each group of three digits on its own — "two hundred and thirty-four" — and then add the scale word for that group. So 234,567 becomes "two hundred and thirty-four thousand, five hundred and sixty-seven". This converter follows the short-scale system used in modern British and American English, where a billion is a thousand million.

If you really want to get down to the nitty-gritty: there are a lot of little rules that can trip you up. 

Type any whole number above and it's spelled out instantly. Decimals are read digit by digit after the point, the way you'd say an amount aloud.

Numbers in words: quick reference

Guides to writing numbers